A Serious Man

A Serious Man

A Serious Man - Written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, starring Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, and Fred Melamed - Rated R

I was going to give this a Vader, but it only makes sense to give a great Coen Brothers film a Chigurh.

I am very glad that the Coen Brothers, riding high from the success of No Country for Old Men and Burn After Reading, were able to make this personal film about physics professor Larry Gopnick (Stuhlbarg) and his struggle to deal with a plethora of problems. That synopsis sounds a bit vague (and boring), but it's a bit hard to explain the story without giving a spoiler filled interpretation. I suppose the best way to put it is that this film is an adaptation of the Book of Job, set in the late 60's in the Midwest. If you're not familiar with the story of Job from the Bible, I certainly suggest that you at least look at a synopsis of the story before you watch this film. That was the extent of my research before I saw this and it made for one of the deepest viewings of a film I've had this year.

The religious connections do not stop at the Job adaptation. This is also a film that is very much about the Jewish religion. And the film starts with a kind of Hebrew folktale about curse being visited upon a family. That emphasis on religion leads me to base my interpretation almost completely on the Book of Job. Though it is not a literal translation by any means. More of a "inspired by" take on it rather than a "based on."

There is a basic story to the film, though. Larry's wife, Judith, wants a ritual divorce so she can marry Sy Ableman (a terrific Melamed). Divorce is troubling enough as it is, but matters are made worse as Sy and Judith try to work out the details with Larry and can't seem to understand why he might be upset by any of this. Larry, for his part, seems utterly befuddled by the development. Larry also has to deal with his troubled brother Arthur (Kind), a pot-smoking son, Danny, who seems to only need his father to fix the TV reception, a daughter who only cares about her hair, financial problems, the possibility of not receiving tenure at his college, and a Korean student who is attempting to bribe him for a passing grade. In other words, Larry's life isn't going well and he doesn't understand why any of this is happening.

While this all sounds a bit depressing, the film is actually very funny. The Coens are masters of the awkward conversation and A Serious Man has them aplenty. Every interaction featuring Sy Ableman was hilarious, the excessive cussing of Danny and his friends had me laughing every time, and the meetings with the three rabbis were extremely funny. There are no real stand out comedic set pieces, but the film has general funny undertone to it. Think more along of the lines of Miller's Crossing or Fargo type humor rather than the blatant comedy of The Big Lebowski or O Brother, Where Art Thou?The comedy hinges on one performance, though, and Stuhlbarg completely delivers. He is perfect at playing the exasperated Larry. What impressed me the most about his performance were his facial gestures. Stuhlbarg is able to convey so much without speaking and you really feel for the guy, even though you'll be laughing at his misery throughout. Here's hoping that he's recognized this awards season.

Laughing at someone's misery certainly doesn't sound like a good time, but the Coens pull it off. This is dark comedy at its finest. I thought that Burn After Reading was a bit too dark and unpleasant at times, but they found the right groove for this film.

The comedy makes this film entertaining but it's the deeper meaning beneath the story that makes it a lasting and rewarding experience. There are too few films out there than can make me laugh aloud while watching it and then have a serious and lengthy conversation about it when it's over. A Serious Man goes to show that a deep film doesn't have to be utterly confusing and humorless.I'm a bit biased when it comes to Coen Brothers films, but I have to say that this is easily one of the best films of the year, possible even the best. I don't consider it their best film, though (to me, Miller's Crossing is the Coens at their best), but time will tell on that one. The Coens have a way of making films that get better with age and this one will definitely hold up well. For now, I count it among their best and that is saying something.

I feel the need to add a couple SPOILER-filled paragraphs discussing the point of the film and what the ending meant to me. So please stop reading if you haven't seen the film yet.

A Serious Man ends with Larry getting a phone call from his doctor with presumably bad news. While he's receiving this news a tornado is heading towards his son. That's not the important part, though. What's important is what happened right before the phone call. Larry gives in and accepts the bribe from the Korean student and just as he pencils in a passing grade for him he gets the call and the tornado heads toward his son. To me, this was Job/Larry failing the test that God was putting him through. (I know that Job passes in the Bible, but remember I consider this to be inspired by the story, not based on it.) The whole film was a trial of sorts for Larry and he failed miserably and got punished for it.

To back this claim up, think back on Danny's constant complaining about the TV reception. Larry has to go on the roof to mess with the antennae. As he twists and turns it he can hear reception coming in and out, like someone is trying to reach him but just can't get through. I don't think I'm off base in thinking that this is supposed to represent God's attempt to reach Larry. I feel that I am backed up by this since the poster image of the film features Larry on the roof next to his antennae.Just my two cents on what it all meant. I'm sure there are other interpretations that are just as "right" as mine and that's another aspect that makes this film great.

Eric Harris - www.canneltoncritic.com

A Serious Man

In which I gush all over another Coen Brothers' movie (A Serious Man)

Larry Gopnick has been going through a rough patch.
 










 

(Read Less...)

Ruben of the Floating Red Couch<br />
http://www.floatingredcouch.com

Last updated: 2010-04-14 10:56:11 by user01

A Serious Man

A casual viewer may wonder what to make of the Coen Brothers' latest movie, A Serious Man.

After the apparently unconnected opening sequence, in which an Eastern European Jewish family are visited by what they think is a dybbuk - an undead being from Jewish folklore - A Serious Man finally settles into its story, but it still isn't easy viewing. This is a meandering philosophical tale about one man's search for meaning, so it's never going to take the easy route.

Gone is the obvious comedy of Burn After Reading, or the stark severity and violence of No Country For Old Men. In their place we're given a starless, directionless modern fable that explores notions of Jewishness and what it means to be a good man.

But what a fable it is. Joel and Ethan Coen may have taken a less obvious route through their narrative than in their most recent films, but they've lost none of their quirkiness or visual power, lending all their moviemaking nous to a story that resonates far beyond its curious closing minutes. It may not be easy viewing - but I'd take smart and challenging over easy any day.

Michael Stuhlbarg (who, curiously, appears in the final minutes of Cold Souls, also released on DVD in the UK this week) takes the lead role of Larry Gopnik, a physics professor living in the Minneapolis suburbs in 1967. Larry is permanently taken advantage of by everyone who crosses his path, and his general philosophy of non-resistance makes him an easy mark for anyone who wants to manipulate his good nature.

His daughter is stealing from him, one of his college students is bribing him to pass his course, and his wife is having an open affair with his friend. Even his neighbor is bullying him into allowing an illegal outhouse to be built on his property.

If it sounds as if Larry's passivity might make for a dull central character, however, then think again. Stuhlbarg excels in the role, imbuing it with humour and pathos, and ensuring that we see just enough of Larry's internal angst to root for him even as everyone around him abuses and manipulates him. Larry may not be your classic hero, but in the hands of Stuhlbarg and the Coens he becomes a tragi-comic figure of Shakespearian depths.

The rest of the cast are universally excellent too, and Larry's meetings with the local rabbis are among the funniest scenes the Coen Brothers have put on film. A Serious Man may not have the laugh-out-loud moments of The Big Lebowski or Intolerable Cruelty, but in its own darkly pessimistic way it stands among their most humorous work.

It's setting also marks it out as one of their most personal films, and you can feel the strength of experience and conviction behind its many quirky observations and everyday revelations. A Serious Man sits closest in tone to Barton Fink (note that regular Coen collaborator Michael Lerner appears in both films - the only Coen regular on show here): and if Barton Fink showed us the life of the mind, then Larry Gopnik goes some way towards revealing the life of the soul.

A Serious Man will still be a little too obscure for some tastes, but true Coen fans will revel in the small details that help it rise above its slightly uninspiring subject matter. It's smart, funny, intelligent and revealing - just don't expect any fireworks, friend-o.

Bolt from the Blue

In a modern-day take on the Book of Job, A Serious Man is a dark yet comical look into a life of turmoil.

Though it isn’t hysterically funny, it leaves the viewer chuckling at the sheer nonsense of it all.

Written, directed, and produced by the Coen brothers-Joel and Ethan- this film questions life, love, purpose, religion, and even God himself. It brings to light the cracks in what would seem to be the perfect family.

Professor Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) is your average suburban Jewish male. He has a wife (Sari Lennick), two kids, and a great job at the local university. He is preparing for his son’s Bar Mitzvah, and his own upcoming tenure. From the outside looking in it would appear that Larry is living the American dream.
As the story plays out, however, the viewer sees just how quickly life can unravel.

In a series of incredibly unfortunate events, so unfortunate that you laugh every time something new happens, the Gopnik family falls to pieces one dysfunction at a time.

Larry must juggle a son whose main concerns are marijuana and television, a daughter who only cares about her hair, an inept brother (Richard Kind) who lives on the couch, a distant wife, and a student who will do anything to get a better grade.

Faced with moral dilemmas in his marriage and career, Larry seeks counsel from his lawyer and local rabbis. With witty dialogue, the viewer takes part in Larry’s journey for answers to the age-old questions, “Where is God in life?” and, “Why am I here?”

Larry is being pulled in all directions, and his life isn’t what he thought. But like Job, who keeps his faith through extreme trials and tribulations, Larry continues to seek out the parts of his faith that tell him everything will eventually be fine.

Whether he is being bombarded by his family on all sides about television antennas and divorces, or he is arguing over the phone with a record company collection agency, Larry seems to keep his faith as well as his cool.

Though he may question why he is being put to the ultimate test, he never really believes that God is treating him unfairly.

Everybody has a breaking point, and half the enjoyment of this dark comedy is waiting for it. The viewer is constantly thinking that this poor man can’t take much more.

With an odd soundtrack, and an even odder cast, this is a film that may not win awards for cinematography, but certainly can hold its own when it comes to direction and plot.

If you like stories like those told in Little Miss Sunshine and Juno, A Serious Man will certainly appeal to your tastes.

3/5 Light Bulbs

(Read Less...)

Recommendations: Wizard of Oz

In which I gush all over another Coen Brothers' movie (A Serious Man)

In which I gush all over another Coen  Brothers' movie (A Serious Man)


/</gidiv style="clear: both; text-align: center;"/>/gi Larry Gopnick has been  going through a rough patch.

His wife wants a divorce, and wants him out of the house.  His kids are  loud and obnoxious.  The stress is really affecting his performance at  work: he's a university professor trying to get tenure.  A student is  trying to bribe him and his spastic brother is living with him.  He's a  stressed out man, and he's looking for support from the Jewish community  in which he lives, but people are more interested in their own lives to  offer much more than a hasty bit of advice about Larry keeping his chin  up, and perhaps a non-sequitor story meant to create levity.

In fact, most of the people around him are moving around seemingly on  auto-pilot, a state of being that used to describe Larry's movements,  but these stresses in his life have seemingly knocked him out of his  happy little rut.  His despair is that he's looking for meaning in  everything (aren't we all), and that the only answer to his inquiries  seems to be "God only knows." (or perhaps more accurately "Only God  knows")

Not good enough.
Sy Abelman - being himself.  His son - being himself - does one of those record  clubs (remember those?  1 cent for 10 and then one a month forever?) in  his name.  And now Larry owes money.  Everywhere he turns people are  taking from him and not giving back in return, all the while his faith  in the civility of the community is wavering more and more.  All to  which, Larry repeats his mantra: I haven't done anything!

Case in point.  Larry is at work, at his desk, and the man from  the tenure committee stops by his doorway and says three times  consecutively something to the effect of, "Larry, I don't want to worry  you, but I felt I should tell you about something -- which of course has  no bearing on our decision as to whether or not you receive your tenure  . . . "

Three times he says this! before telling him what the the "something"  is.  (An anonymous person was writing the committee letters about him:  they never told him what the letters said)

That is the kind of thing that really promotes an unsettling sense of  paranoia.  Civility is breaking down so civilly around Larry.

The crescendo --- last scene spoiler alert --- is a tornado (God  himself) arrives one day to the Minnesota community.  At the same time,  Larry gets a call from his doctor asking him to come in to discuss  x-rays.  This is not going to be good news, considering Larry's luck  lately.


<div style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> This is where Joel and Ethan Coen,  film making tag team champs, decide to cut to black.

Like all of their other flicks, the Coens push levity in the face of  bleak reality.  Larry is Job -- a man whose faith is tested by God  through some very unfortunate circumstances.  Just bad timing piled on  top of bad luck lumped on top of shit.  And, the moment that he breaks  down, the moment that he sells his principals because he is broke and  has no other option between poverty and that, just when things look to  be picking up for Larry (he gets his tenure, his son passes his Bar  Mitzvah, his wife seems to want to reconcile), the doctor calls about  the x-rays.  Such a downer is so damn sparklingly witty.

Ruben of the Floating Red Couch<br />
http://www.floatingredcouch.com

Booze Revooze: A Drinker’s Skewed View of A SERIOUS MAN

Ramblings:  Seriously, Man

Final Proof: 2 Shots

You know how you drink with losers? Not jerks or assholes or anything, but those guys who are crap magnets because if there’s bad luck anywhere in the area, it’s gonna happen to them. They’re the guys who waitresses drop their trays on, whose toes fat people always step on, whose shirts are always untucked, who get the beer that’s all foam, who set their pack of smokes in the drink puddle and who always end up paying the tab even if they make the least amount of money. Sure, there’s something comical about these kind of people and you even feel some empathy for them because sometimes you feel like you’re that kind of jinxed, but are they funny? Not so much. And they’re not all that fun to drink with because even if they don’t complain, you can’t help but see how miserable they are. A Serious Man is kind of like that.

A Serious Man is a serious movie. Sure, it’s the Coen brothers but was No Country For Old Men a laugh riot? In fact, A Serious Man is an intellectual European movie, down to the ending.  The movie’s pro’lly hilarious if you know about Schrödinger’s Cat, but i’m just a normal guy who wants to go to the movies. Not to leave you in the dark, this Schrödinger dude got in a battle of wits with Einstein and said that a cat in a box is either dead or alive, not dead and alive until you open the box to find out what the deal is with the cat. We’re supposed to know all this and recognize that Larry Gopnik (played perfectly by Michael Stuhlbarg) is both alive and dead in his life. Or something like that. It makes my head hurt, if you want to know the truth.

Ok, there are a couple of cute scenes that’ll make you laugh out loud (the bar mitzvah scene is fairly hilarious, for example and the note at the end of the credits was awesome: “No Jews were harmed in the making of this motion picture”) plus the actors do an impeccable job, but if this movie was made by Ethan Allen and Joel Blow instead of Ethan and Joel Coen, nobody would be talking about it.

People are gonna tell you that you have to like this movie because it’s arty and by the Coen brothers. That if you don’t like it you’re not hip or smart enough. They’ll say you gotta love this movie because it’s about Jewish people and hating it is anti-semitic. Don’t let ‘em. Dare to recognize this is a movie made to wow the critics but not for commoners like you and me.

Buzz Kills (Watch Out for Spoilers)

Sex: 0 Shots

Take a look at the cast on IMDB. There are a gajillion guys and not enough girls. ‘Nuff said.

We do get to see Larry spying on his neighbor tanning topless, but unfortunately it’s from a distance. Too bad because Amy Landecker is super hot at 40.
There was a Silken Butterfly in disguise, because the fleeting beauty  in A Serious Man was disguised as a homely chick. Thank gos Miss Demeanor spotted the Butterfly hiding inside the caterpillar. Here, then, is Jessica McManus (18).
Drink: 0 Shots

Larry’s wife’s lover brings over a bottle of Bordeaux to smooth things over.

Let me check my notes… Yep, that’s it.

Rock & Roll: 1 Shot

The movie is set in 1967 and apparently the Coen’s were big fans of Jefferson Starship back then. We got three songs by them, “3/5 Of A Mile In 10 Seconds”, “Comin’ Back To Me” and “Somebody To Love”. There’s even a Rabbi towards the end who quotes the Airplane. “When the truth is found to be lies / And all the joy within you dies…”

Boring Technical Crap

Written by: Ethan and Joel Coen

Directed by: Ethan and Joel Coen

Starring

Amy Landecker – Mrs. Samsky

Jessica McManus – Sarah Gopnik

Michael Stuhlbarg – Larry Gopnik

Bottom Line

European critics LOVE this movie, need i say more?

(Read Less...)

Al K Hall<br />
Functional Alcoholic Slurperson<br />
(No, REALLY. Google &amp;quot;Slurperson&amp;quot; if you don't believe me.)

Last updated: 2010-04-01 10:59:02 by user08

A SERIOUS MAN

****½

A bracing, consistently soul-expanding set of digressions on man’s compulsion to seek out meaning in a dumb, routinely harsh universe. Abstract though it is, and idiosyncratic, it resonates in an intimate way, and deeply.

A Serious Man

Starring: Michael Stuhlbarg
Drama, 2009 (Rated R)

A College Professor named Larry (Stuhlbarg) in a small town suddenly finds his life crumbling around him. His wife wants a divorce, his socially awkward brother has camped out on his couch, his children are constantly fighting and his tenure status at the college is in question. To help him navigate this tough time in his life he seeks out the guidance of 3 rabbi's.

• This movie started out weird. When it starts out back in the 1800's and there are subtitles do not be alarmed. It is the right movie.
• The title is A Serious Man and I must say this was a serious movie. Almost too serious. To the point of being boring.
• I got really tired of seeing Larry being such a push over. I wanted to yell at him to just get a back bone already and maybe that alone would solve half of his problems.
• There were some interesting moments but overall this movie was just dry and serious and weird.

1 STAR

(Read Less...)

Just Me

Last updated: 2010-03-13 06:11:45 by user05

A Serious Man - ***

Review:  This was a very interesting movie.  I was looking for a movie to rent and this was nominated for best picture so I thought I would give it a go.  The whole movie I wasn't quite sure what to think. 

The movie revolves around main character Larry Gopnik and how one day his world completely falls apart and his life continues to unravel slowly from there on out.  His wife wants a divorce, his chance for tenure as a professor is in jeopardy, his kids are constantly disinterested, his brother (who lives with them) is getting in legal trouble, and he has no answers for any of this.

Larry loved the routine of his life before all this happened and he longs for that routine once again.  The status quo is comforting for Larry, even if everything wasn't quite right.  Even if it didn't feel right, as long as everything was chugging along, it didn't feel wrong either.  Larry was just doing what he was supposed to do, get married, get a job, have kids, raise kids, etc.  If he was able to fit in a few things he liked in there, that was good too, but mostly he just did what he was supposed to.  Further, he did what he thought was right and he thought of himself as a good man who was living his life the right way.

Naturally, when his world comes crashing down, Larry begins to question why.  He lives a good life, is a morally just person, etc., why is he being "punished" for this?  In order to find answers Larry chooses to go to faith.  As Larry is Jewish his first step is to go to the rabbi to ask for help in understanding his plight.  It is this point where we begin to see the parallels between Larry's story and the story of Job from the Bible.  Larry completely breaks down in front of the Rabbi but is still given no answers and only more questions.  The bad situations in his life will most likely continue to get worse and there will be no clear reason why.  It is up to Larry to continue to live his life in the best way possible despite of al this.

Let me tell you what I like about the Coen brothers.  When they make a movie, there is not a single frame wasted.  I had the same thought coming out of the extraordinary "No Country for Old Men" and the same thought while watching this movie.  Every scene, every prop, every character, every personality nuance, they are all carefully orchestrated in this movie for the greater purpose of the film. 

They also do what I am assuming is a good job of portraying Jewish culture in this time period and the struggles that a man in Larry's situation would go through.  Larry struggles to keep himself together despite the rest of his universe crumbling.  It is Larry's ultimate reality that although his life used to be comfortable it wasn't enjoyable.  Perhaps now that the rest of his life has slipped away, this is his opportunity to start anew with his life and do what he wants instead of what he thinks he is supposed to do.  That's what this movie is about, realizing that even though nothing is "wrong" with your life, it doesn't mean everything is right. 

My biggest complaint from this movie is that there is a lot of buildup, especially in the last 20 minutes and the movie just ends abruptly.  I won't spoil the ending by giving away details, but I came away feeling cheated.  I can understand a movie leaving some things open, but this movie seemed to be still building towards a climax and then...just...stopped.  Perhaps that was the whole point of the ending, that our lives are constantly building towards a climax and we all just "stop" before we get there, that we need to take a hold of our lives before we approach that climax so there is nothing left to resolve before it just...ends.

A Serious Man

"A Serious Man" is a dark comedy written, directed, and produced by Joel and Ethan Coen ("Barton Fink," "Fargo," "The Big Lebowski," "No Country For Old Men," "Burn After Reading," etc). The cast includes several not very well known actors: Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Fred Melamed, and Sari Lennick. Yep...probably the most well-known cast member is Richard Kind who was part of the "Mad About You" cast.

First of all this movie kind of has a plot! (unlike a certain "Big Lebowski"). The movie takes place in Minnesota, circa 1967. Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) has the typical life. He's a physics professor at a college. His brother, Arthur (Richard Kind), is living on his family's couch. He has a wife, Judith (Sari Lennick), who is having an affair with Sy Abelman (Fred Melamed) and one night decides she and Larry had better start talking about getting a divorce and that it might be a good idea for him to move out of the house and into the "Jolly Roger" motel. Oh yeah...Larry also has a son, Danny, who smokes marijuana, watches more "F Troop" than the average person, and is about to be bar mitzvahed, and a daughter, Sarah, who may or may not be stealing money from her dad to get a nose job. So Larry's life is falling apart (including an Asian man who wants to sue him for failing his son on his exam). He is trying to make sense of it all...and being a respectable Jewish person seeks help from a wide range of rabbis.

The acting in this movie is fantastic. Cast-wise it's the complete opposite of the Coen's last movie, "Burn After Reading," which had an all-star cast. Nevertheless, a cast of mainly unknowns in "A Serious Man" worked so well. A great group of actors was chosen. They all had tremendous chemistry with each other and were just convincing in their roles. Michael Stuhlbarg was perfect as the lead character. He is very believable as a man whose life is coming to pieces and is just trying to get some clarity while he puts up with way too much. He also has some great dream sequence scenes that let us know how the crazy things in his life have affected him. Richard Kind, as his brother, was also a result of some great casting. He is just such a funny actor and seems like the right choice to play someone who spends most of his time on the couch, in the bathroom draining something gross, or gambling. I won't talk about every single actor in the movie...most of which I had never heard of before...but trust me they are all good...except the kids really annoyed me.

The movie is unbelievably funny...and no cheap laughs to be found here either...since those are rarely, if ever, funny. The writing is just so smart with slight dark undertones and it works out wonderfully. Nothing is exaggerated and, for the most part, people say their lines straight. The way Larry just lets things happen to him is just great and works out to be pretty hilarious many times. It wouldn't even make sense to list the funny things in the movie...since reading funny things isn't usually that fun of a time...although I will say both neighbors in the movie have very funny scenes. Just watch the movie and experience it for yourself...watch the trailer first to get pumped.

The visuals and the sound in "A Serious Man" are stunning. Everything looks like it's actually from the 1960s (of course my perception of what the 1960s looks like mainly comes from "The Dick Van Dyke Show" and "Bewitched"). The coloring of all the set pieces and everything made out for a nice little slice of suburbia. The camera movements throughout the film are also used effectively. There are several close ups to get facial expressions from characters as well as long shots changing to close ups as the camera zooms in. All of it flows very naturally and makes the movie appealing. Sound in the movie is often exaggerated for great effect. Larry's head banging against the wall, a secretary coughing, ice knocking together in a glass, etc, are all overly pronounced and just add an artistic piece the film that I thought worked well and complimented the cinematography.

The beginning and ending of the film actually really confused me. I didn't see how the beginning related to the film and I thought the end was abrupt. Then Larry Bean explained it to me and everything was fine.

The Coen brothers make great movies. Their movie-making style is a little different and a little darker than most, which is what makes their movies so great. Of the 8 films by the Coen's that I have seen, "A Serious Man" is now definitely one of my favorites. The acting, writing, cinematography, soundtrack, etc, just come together incredibly well in a wonderfully put together and highly memorable experience. And it's just incredibly funny...and it is so hard to make a good comedy these days. 4 out of 4 stars...and don't worry...according to the end credits "No Jews were harmed in the making of this motion picture."...it honestly says that and I thought it was great... 

(Read Less...)

A Serious Man: Seriously Side-splitting

The Coen brothers had the Movie Slut at "There's Something About Mary." Now, they have her falling off her seat laughing — again.

Meet Larry Gopnik, college prof, family man, observant Jew and all around nice guy. Too bad life has turned him into Mr. Job Kafka, victim of an absurd universe.

Larry's neighbor is a redneck, gun-toting goy. His wife has taken up with a smarmyesque Sen. Joe Leiberman clone. And his teen-age kids. Oy vey!

All he wants is an answer to the big question: WHAT IN THE NAME OF YAHWEH IS GOING ON?

Larry's odyssey for answers is the heart, soul and funny bone of this comedie noir.

Hint: Pay special attention to the wise words spoken by Rabbi No. 3.

See you at the movies, The Movie Slut

A Serious Man

I have always been puzzled by the Coen brothers' films. Sometimes they come out with some great stuff like O Brother, Where Art thou?, Fargo and Burn After Reading. And sometimes they come up with some really weird shit that people mistake for brilliant masterpieces like Raising Arizona and No Country For Old Men.



Their latest film A Serious Man is one of the 10 nominees for Best Picture at the Oscars and it is one of the weirdest ones the Coen brothers have done yet. But this time, it's one of the weird ones that I'm actually able to understand. And it is quiet a fantastic movie once you are able to get what they are trying to do.




So A Serious Man is about Larry Gopnik, a man who had a relatively good life with his Yiddish family living in America in the 1960's. The film examines his life as it begins a downward spiral almost out of nowhere. Suddenly his wife wants to leave him for his neighbor, he finds out his daughter has been stealing money from him to save for a nose job, his son is a marijuana junkie, his brother who has been living with him is a wanted fugitive, he is being sued for not accepting a bribe from a kiasu Asian student and will be sued if he does accept it, and the Education Board is deciding not to grant him tenure.


 
So basically his quiet charmed life goes from sweet to shit in a matter of days. But Larry perseveres and tried to seek out the council of Rabbi Marshak, a spiritual leader to help him find the answers to all his problems.



The cast of A Serious Man comprises of mostly Braodway actors which was really great to see. Michael Stuhlbarg was fantastic as Larry Gopnick. Most of the time I watched this movie just to see if his character is going to go crazy or explode what with all the shit everyone is putting him through. Yeah I felt sorry for him but at the same time it's kinda cool looking at how much problems a person can take before finally losing it.



And my God the entire cast were ugly people. Seriously, these are by far the ugliest group of actors I have ever seen assembled in one film. But in terms of the character development for each of them, the Coen brothers did write a fantastic script that's is really funny but incredibly random for the most part.



But there was Amy Landecker who plays Larry's sexy next door neighbor. Damn I could stare into those eyes for hours hahahaha. She played her character in a really one note way with a very monotonous voice. But it was the deep sassy kind of monotonous voice, you know what I mean?




The premise around A Serious Man is very complicated. There were a lot of things that was going on that made no sense. For one, the opening 10 minutes of the film had absolutely nothing related the overall story. And I was left guessing a lot what the point of the movie was even after the credits ended. But when I started to think about it.. the Jewish themes, the problems Larry faced throughout the movie.. it finally snapped in me!



A Serious Man is a modern adaptation of the story of Job from the Old Testament of The Bible. It tells of a man who had a good life and honored God. But Satan made a bet with God that Job wouldn't appreciate him anymore if he didn't have the good life that he had. So God made job's life hell to prove Satan wrong. All over this film, it had references to various stories from the Bible. Larry Gopnik's shitty life- The trials of Job. The bribe from the Asian student- The temptation of Christ. And there is another scene where Larry watches his neighbor sunbath naked which was a throwback to David and Bathsheba.



I'm not spoiling anything about the movie really. Maybe you'll understand it better now that you know what this film was based on. I still have some trouble figuring out the final moment of the film though and how it related to the stories in the Bible. If you've seen it, could you explain it to me please??

RATING: 7/10

(Read Less...)

NicholasC

A Serious Man

When I think of the Coen brothers, I think of their movie Miller’s Crossing. More specifically, I think of the scene at the end of Miller’s Crossing, when John Turturro begs Gabriel Byrne to “Look in your heart!” and Bryne replies, “What heart?” before shooting him. That, to me, is quintessential Coen: witty, achingly clever, and heartless. If there’s a line where unsentimental becomes schadenfreude, every Coen brothers movie ignores the delineation. Their new effort – A Serious Man – is a comedy of torture. A nebbish physics professor asks the meaning of his existence, and the movie answers him the way Gabriel Byrne answered John Turturro.

After a prologue where a well-meaning Jew invites disaster into his house, we meet Larry Gopnik; a well-meaning Jew who only seeks tenure. Larry is a good, God-fearing man with some serious problems. First, his wife wants a divorce. Second, he’s being blackmailed. Third, he feels forsaken by God. Larry also has a no-good, gambling addict brother and two bratty kids to worry about, but it’s the “forsaken by God”-thing which rankles him the most. In search of answers, Larry turns to three rabbis. But they offer him thin advice. So it seems it’s up to Larry to deal with his problems; if he has real problems; if all problems aren’t a screen from death.

Michael Stuhlbarg, who plays Larry, has the default expression of a man in trouble (the look you get when you’re on a rope bridge and you hear a “snap”). Despite this, he’s a likeable person. Stuhlbarg never seems stupid or gullible as various shitheels exploit him, which is why he maintains our sympathy even when he stubbornly refuses to get mad. His misfortune is to be in a Coen brothers’ movie. Anywhere else he’d be shown mercy. But the Coens – like Flannery O’Connor – aren’t big on giving nice people their reward. They’d rather show us how cruel, how arbitrary, life is. Stuhlberg’s eyebrows have more chance of pardoning him than the script.

The three rabbis Larry encounters are, in order: naïve, indifferent and inscrutable. The first tells him his problems are all about perspective. “Look at the parking lot!” he tells Larry. It certainly seems to make the first rabbi happy. The second rabbi tells Larry a long involved story about a Jewish dentist and a goy’s teeth. In the story, the dentist finds the words “Help me! Save me!” inscribed where only a dentist could ever read them. It could be a message from God; the revelation of a profound truth. But the second rabbi assures Larry that the moral of the story is to ignore profundity. The last rabbi, Larry only sees through a crack in the door to the rabbi’s office. This man offers no advice. He’s only a presence. For Larry, this last encounter is perhaps the truest expression of his religious faith.

Keep track of Larry’s son in this movie. I’m convinced he’s Larry mark 2. We first meet him listening to Grace Slick in his yeshiva class, then what’s dearest to him in the whole world (his transistor radio) is taken from him, then he’s bullied relentlessly, then a tornado touches down about twelve feet from where he’s stood. As played by Aaron Wolff, he’s a slack-jawed weenie with a fondness for pot (much like his dad). He’s also deeply concerned with Jewish tradition even though he doesn’t understand a word of it. Stoned out of his gourd on the day of his bar mitzvah, he sees absurdity all around him, but any meaning to the ceremony is lost.

Be happy you have problems is the moral of Larry’s story. If you want an explanation for the last shot of A Serious Man (and you will), here it is: death ends all problems. There’s a lot from the Book of Job in this movie. Job (as you’ll recall) is the one where a pious man is tested by God. After all his travails, when Job’s wife tells him to “curse God and die”, Job says to his wife, “Shall we receive good at the hand of God and shall we not receive evil?” For a good Jew, Larry is somewhat remiss in forgetting that verse. The reason the Coens are inspired by it is obvious: Job is Larry. He’s every man in every Coen brothers movie. The question is: does God laugh at Job?

A Serious Man

     I may just be done with the Coen brothers after this.  I don't care how brilliant your symbolism is, poor story telling makes for an unenjoyable movie.  I may be being a bit harsh.  I'll give the Coen brothers this.  They do seem to be able to capture the essence of a person or people.  Perhaps if I knew more about Midwestern Jews in the 1960s I would have found parts of "A Serious Man" more interesting or amusing.  I did, after all, love "Raising Arizona," but, then again, I have a lot of experience with, shall we say, people who prefer to live in trailer houses.  That having been said, making a movie inaccessible to everyone but a specific group is also bad storytelling. 
 
     "A Serious Man" is the Coen brothers attempt to tell the biblical story of Job, in which, Satan contends that, to a man who has everything in life, like Job does, faith comes easily, so, to prove a point, God allows Satan to do all sorts of terrible things to Job, but Job's faith remains unshaken, so God gives him back everything he had, plus more.  In the Coen brothers version, a very sad and pathetic individual, has some bad things happen to him and he gives into temptation.  Along the way, there is a lot of symbolic imagery, including a tornado, and a lot of loose ends don't get tied up. (Also, I was bored for 105 minutes!)
 
     This wasn't all that bad of an idea for a film, but the story was executed very poorly.  It's impossible to feel anything for our main character, with the exception of maybe contempt.  Without empathy for the characters, you are simply left to sit in the dark watching sad, pathetic people fail miserably at life until the end, where they fail the final, biblically inspired, test.  (I understood the ending, the tornado is God, but that doesn't mean that I liked the ending, or any other part of it!)  People who are not familiar with the biblical story, or who fail to make the connection to it, will simply be bored by this movie and completely confused by the ending.  It's the job of the storyteller to make their story accessible to as many as possible, not just a few.  (Unless your goal is to make your movie inaccessible and pompous.)  Again, that's bad story telling. Just as surly as making a movie with nothing but overblown special effects and no plot makes for a poor movie, so does nailing the symbolism you are trying to get across, but failing to make any other part of the movie engaging.
 
     If your passions lie in picking a movie apart to find more and more layers of (what you think are) symbolic meaning so that others will marvel at your (apparent) perception, you'll love this one.  As for me, well, I know when, as an audience member, I'm not wanted.

(Read Less...)

Brian
Ciné Critique Américain

A Serious Man

I think the Coen Brothers love frustrating audiences.  Because that’s certainly what they do here in A Serious Man.  Fortunately it has some solid chuckles to bring it to okay status, but the Coen’s refusal to explain their weird and quirky scenes really pisses me off.  I understand that you don’t want to spoon feed the audience every little thing, but every major scene in this movie leaves you confused.  And there are no hints at all to help you decipher it.  That’s all I’m asking for.  One little hint.  I know it makes sense in their own little world, but they forget that audiences have to pay money to watch them be obnoxious.  But I expect this from a Coen Brothers movie, so that’s not what really bothered me here.

The main problem with this movie is that it just meanders along.  It goes nowhere.  You just watch Larry Gopnik self destruct.  He doesn’t do anything to help his situation or hurt his situation.  So why am I watching it?  It would be fine if the movie was really funny, but it’s only mildly amusing at best.  What really ticks me off is that whenever Larry tries to improve his life its either way to abrupt or its typical Coen Brothers bull shit.

What do I mean by the typical Coen Brothers bull shit?  There is a scene where Larry finally goes to see a much respected Rabbi for counsel, and the Rabbi tells him this very long winded story to try and inspire him.  But by the end of it, the story doesn’t say anything and Larry is left frustrated, as is the audience.  And that’s the whole joke of the scene.  Well that’s bull shit.  It’s a pretty long story to get to one lame joke.  If it was funny, then fine.  But it’s not.

They also introduce major plot points that go no where and have random conclusions with no explanation.  For example, there is a sub plot with Larry’s neighbor that has such great tension and build-up, but it ends so abruptly, erasing all the emotion I had towards this storyline.  What the hell!  The Coen Brothers do this all the time!  And not only that, whenever something interesting actually happens, they pull the rug out from under you as if to say "just kidding, that wasn't real."  And these “fake sequences” are so long.  If they were quick little scenes, then fine.  But they actually pulled me back into the movie only to have it end in bull shit!

I do want to get to the positives, because there were moments I liked.  Michael Stuhlbarg gives a great performance as Larry Gopnik.  He plays it as such a pathetic character, but the performance is charming enough that you feel sympathetic towards him.  Unfortunately that was really the only acting performance worthy of note.  There is also a very strong conflict involving Larry and one of his failing math students that actually does have a satisfying conclusion.  But by far the best and funniest scene in the movie was Larry’s son’s Bar Mitzvah.  The direction is flawless.  The heavy sound effects and close up shots were hysterical, but I can't get to much more into it without spoiling it.

The Coen Brothers are very talented directors…extremely talented in fact.  They just make these decisions sometimes that really make you grind your teeth.  It’s like they only understand their little world and if you don't get it, tough shit.  But in my opinion, they don't get it either and just come off as obnoxious, trying to sound smarter than everyone else.  The beginning sequence of this film, I swear, has nothing to do with the rest of the movie.  And it’s a long scene.  It’s just infuriating.  A Serious Man has some decent entertainment value, but its nothing you need to see.

Rating: 5.5 out of 10 (Passable Entertainment) 

Last updated: 2010-01-10 23:45:01 by danjewish